How much does the average person spend on subscriptions?

What the surveys say, and why they disagree

Ask five surveys and you’ll get five different averages. Some count only streaming, others include phone plans, gyms, software and delivery memberships. Some ask people to estimate, others look at bank data. And every figure dates quickly as prices rise.

The most consistent finding is about perception rather than spending. In a 2022 survey of 1,000 US adults by the market research firm C+R Research, people given ten seconds to guess their monthly subscription spending said about $86 on average. Given time to add it up, the figure came to about $219, more than two and a half times the guess.

So the useful question isn’t what everyone else spends. It’s what you spend, and whether each charge is still worth it.

Why your own guess is probably low

• Small prices feel free. A few euros a month doesn’t register as a bill.
• Yearly plans vanish. You pay once and forget the plan exists until it renews.
• Store billing hides names. Several different apps all show up as Apple or Google, so they don’t look like separate bills.
• Shared plans are invisible. If your partner pays for the streaming, it’s still part of your household’s spending.
• Prices creep. A plan that cost €9.99 when you joined may cost more now. See how price increases slip through.

How to work out your real number

1. List every recurring charge. Use the five places to check: statements, your iPhone or Google Play list, PayPal and your inbox.
2. Write down the price and the cycle: weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly.
3. Convert each one to a monthly figure with the formulas below.
4. Add up the monthly figures. That’s your monthly number.
5. Multiply by twelve. That’s your yearly number, and it’s usually the one that changes minds.

The conversion formulas

A worked example

Here’s an ordinary list for one person, with each plan converted to its monthly equivalent. Nothing on it looks extravagant on its own.

Look at what drives the total: the gym and the weekly game pass together make up almost half of it. That’s typical. A couple of larger or more frequent charges usually matter more than the long tail of small ones.

Is your number too high?

There’s no universal right amount. It depends on your income and on what you get from each subscription. Two quick tests help:

• The usage test. Did you use it in the last month? If not, it’s a candidate to cancel or pause.
• The cost per use test. Divide the monthly price by how often you use it. A €34.90 gym you visit twice a month costs €17.45 a visit, which may be more than a day pass.

If you want a figure to aim for, see how much you should spend on subscriptions, which turns the 50/30/20 budget rule into a monthly cap. If it’s the number of subscriptions that feels like the problem, read how many subscriptions is too many.

Where the quickest savings are

• Cancel the most expensive plan you didn’t use last month. One cancellation usually beats trimming five small ones.
• Rotate streaming services instead of paying for several at once. Most let you leave and rejoin whenever you like.
• Move to a smaller or ad-supported tier where you don’t need the extras.
• Switch daily habits to yearly billing, but only when the discount is real. Here’s how to check.
• Share a family plan within the rules of the service.

Common mistakes when adding it up

• Counting weekly plans as four payments a month. Use × 52 ÷ 12.
• Leaving out yearly plans because they aren’t monthly. Divide by twelve and include them.
• Forgetting the non-digital ones: the gym, phone plan, bike or car-sharing memberships and meal boxes.
• Mixing currencies. A plan billed in US dollars or pounds isn’t the same number in euros. Convert it first.
• Counting only what you pay. Include your share of anything someone else pays for you.

Let Billbase do the maths

Billbase converts every billing cycle to the same monthly and yearly units automatically. Plans billed in another currency are converted with daily exchange rates, with the amount on your statement kept right beside the converted figure, so the total is honest.

With Pro, you can ask Billy, the AI analyst built into Billbase, questions like “what are my three most expensive subscriptions?” or “how much do I spend on streaming?” and get the answer from your own list, not from a national average.